Everyone loves homemade pizza, right? Right.

Homemade pizza, what is there about this dish not to love? I say nothing because you literally get to make up any combination that you’ve ever dreamt about having on a pizza and you get to make it for a fraction of the price one would pay at a restaurant. Plus, it’s so much fun making your own dough and then decorating it before popping in the oven and filling the house with the smell of baking bread covered in awesomeness!

This week as part of my Munching Mongoose recipe series I’m going to share our go-to-pizza-dough recipe as well as a killer recipe for a homemade tomato sauce that will convince you that you’re at least a quarter Italian, even if you’re not!

The guys at Munching Mongoose are not only all about bringing fresh organic and seasonal produce straight to your front door but they’re also about encouraging families to get together to spend quality time not only in the kitchen to create good wholesome dinners but to sit around the table afterwards and eat them. That’s one of the things I love about cooking, it really is an activity where everyone can be involved and it’s a cool way to just catch up and enjoy each others company.

This week my Munching Mongoose order included a whole lot of really tasty looking organic vegetables so I gathered up the butternut, mushrooms, tomatoes, red onion and coriander and created a super delicious homemade thin crust vegetarian pizza, which I topped with feta and some really flavoursome Montasio cheese which also came in my bag.

Below is our failproof pizza dough recipe as well as the recipe for some pretty decent homemade tomato sauce, which you can make a big batch of and then freeze for future meals.

If you have missed the last four recipes that I have shared in this series then all you have to do is click the links below so you can check them all out. Happy cooking!

Best Beef In Satay Sauce with Sticky Jasmine Rice

Banana, Cinamon and Maple Syrup Yoghurt Ice-Cream

Heart-Shaped Blueberry Sponge Cake

Beetroot Rosemary and Boerenkaas Risotto

Cream and Mushroom Rosemary Pasta

 

INGREDIENTS PIZZA DOUGH:

· 1 x sachet active dry yeast

· 1 x cup of warm water

· ±2.5 x cups of flour

· pinch of salt

· 1 x teaspoon of sugar

· 2 x teaspoons olive oil

METHOD:

1. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water, let it sit for at least 5 minutes
2. In a bowl (I used a Kitchen Aid with a dough hook) add the half the flour and the yeast mixture. Mix on a medium speed.
3. Add the rest of the flour and then all the salt, sugar and oil. Beat until the dough forms a ball. If the dough is too sticky just add a bit more flour. If it’s too dry then add more water a tablespoon at a time. You have to be able to handle it without it sticking to your hands like glue.
4. Take the dough out of the bowl and knead it on a floured surface for about a minute or so until nice and smooth.
5. Grease a large bowl with some olive oil and pop your ball of dough into it before covering it with some cling wrap and letting it sit in a warm place so it can double in size, usually it takes an hour, but sometimes if I’m in a hurry I don’t wait an hour I wait about 30 minutes and it still comes out nicely.
6. Once your dough is ready, roll it out into a biggish circle, you can roll it as thick or as thin as you like. We like thin crust pizza and this dough works well for that!
7. Cover the top with a nice layer of your tomato sauce, grated cheese and then whatever else takes your pizza fancy. We used a generous helping of Montasio cheese, oven baked butternut, sliced mushrooms, feta and then some fresh cilantro after it came out of the oven.
8. Bake in a pre-heated oven (heat to 180°) for ±10 minutes or until golden brown.

INGREDIENTS FOR HOMEMADE TOMATO SAUCE:

· About 6 ripe tomatoes

· 2 x tablespoons olive oil

· 2 tablespoons salted butter

· 1 red onion, chopped

· 3 cloves garlic, minced

· 1 x tablespoon of white vinegar

· A sachet of tomato puree

· 1/4 cup sweet chilli sauce

· 2 x tablespoons chutney

· 1 x tablespoon sugar

· A handful of chopped coriander

· Salt and pepper to taste

METHOD:

1. Fry your onions until soft then add all the other ingredients and cook on a low heat for a good half an hour. I let mine simmer for an hour and a bit.
2. Once cooled pour the mixture into a blender and blitz until nice and smooth.